So Vile a Sin (26 page)

‘She’s scaly,’ moaned Roz. She sounded like a little kid. ‘She can see me.’

‘Scaly?’

‘She’s a reptile. She can see me, she can see me.’

‘Don’t be fooled,’ said Chris. ‘That’s not her. That’s part of the attack.’

‘Help me.’

‘You don’t need help. You only think you see her.’

‘We’re going to die,’ said Roz. She pressed her face into the sofa. ‘They’re going to kill us. I don’t understand.’

Chris got up. There was something tugging at him, something stronger than the thick blanket of ennui that had settled over him.

He walked over to where Roz was cowering. Might as well.

‘Come on,’ he said. ‘She’s almost here. We don’t want to keep her waiting.’

He put his hands on Roz’s shoulders and gently pulled her to her feet. ‘No, no,’ she was muttering. Chris’s head was full of the soft humming, pushing him down to the floor to sleep, to dream and let out all his secrets. But the calling cut through all of that.

He turned.

There was a hole in the air, a spinning metallic hole. Light spilt out of it into the suite.

There was a female figure standing in the light. Dark stone. She held out a hand to them, her glassy body groaning with the movement. In her other hand there was a long, glittering sword.

194

Roz took a step towards her, reaching for the outstretched hand.

‘See?’ said Chris. 'Not scared now.’

They went to her together.

‘Oh no,’ said Roz. ‘We’re in bloody puterspace.’

Chris looked around. ‘But it’s the suite.’

‘No, look at it. It’s a VR model of the suite. Look at those lines

– it’s not even a good VR simulation. What the hell happened?’

‘We were under psychic attack. A gateway into puterspace opened up. We went through it.’

Chris looked down. He was standing next to his own body, lying face down in the carpet. Roz lay next to him, her lips slightly parted. She looked as though she was asleep.

‘At least, our minds went through it,’ he said. ‘Whoever brought us here created this simulation so we could keep track of what’s happening to our bodies in the real world.’

‘Look at this,’ said Roz. She gestured him over to the suite’s door.

Chris couldn’t see what she meant for a moment. Then he saw that the sliding door was opening, very slowly. Very very slowly.

Just so you could see it.

‘They’re coming for us,’ he said. ‘But we’re in puterspace, so our minds are running much faster than theirs.’

‘You sound far too comfortable with all this,’ said Roz.

‘Haven’t you ever played a video game like this?’ said Chris.

‘In most games,’ said the statue sitting on the sofa, ‘all you can lose is your quarter.’

They whirled, staring at her.

‘Remember me?’ smiled the woman. The obsidian had to stretch and creak to accommodate the expression.

‘No,’ said Chris.

‘Whoever you are,’ said Roz, ‘you’re not the Goddess.’

‘No,’ agreed the statue. ‘I needed a form you’d instinctively trust.’

‘What if we were carrying some terrible secret guilt and knew we deserved punishment?’ said Roz.

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‘Then you’d be even more keen on facing Justice,’ said the statue. Roz scowled, but Chris was nodding. ‘Well, enough of this banter. You’re both in very deep. I had to burrow into the Temple’s systems and I couldn’t grab much memory without setting off a lot of alarms. That’s why the simulation of the suite is a bit rough around the edges. I uploaded almost your whole minds. It took a surprising amount of room.’

‘Thanks,’ said Chris, meaning it. ‘The state those telepaths got us in, they could have done anything with us.’

‘Sneak attack,’ said Roz angrily. ‘I hate that stuff. There oughta be a law.’

‘There is. These are unregistered psis.’ The door had opened sufficiently for them to make out the faces of the people coming in. Three of them, in ordinary clothes, not robes. ‘They’re planning to interrogate you telepathically.’

‘And then kill us?’ said Roz.

The statue shook its heavy head. ‘They won’t need to. Not once they’re finished with you.’

Roz looked at her helpless body, lying on the floor behind the couch. ‘What do I do?’ she said, standing in front of the people starting to push through the door. ‘I’m a ghost!’

‘Hey, watch this,’ said Chris.

He pressed his thumb against the light control. Instantly, the room was pitch black. A moment later, everything was surrounded by a glowing white outline.

‘You can see now,’ said the statue. ‘They can’t. We need to get your bodies out of here.’

The slow-motion people were just starting to react to the blackness. Chris thumbed the door control, and the doors slammed shut behind them, cutting off the light from the corridor.

‘How are we going to do that? Can you put us back in?’

‘Of course.’

‘Wait,’ said Chris. ‘We’re controlling the lights and the door through the computer system, right? If you put us back in our bodies, we’ll lose that.’

‘I’ll keep you connected up. Trust me, I’m not going to cut and run this time.’

196

Roz looked at her suddenly. ‘FLORANCE!’

‘At your service. I owe you for helping me out on Dione. OK, let’s rock!’

‘Oh –’ said Roz.

‘Shit!’ said Roz, sitting up suddenly behind the sofa.

Chris pulled himself to his knees. ‘Get the crukking lights!’

shouted someone. Chris could see their outline in the doorway, pushing past the other two on the way to the light switch.

For an instant, the lights came back on. The psis blinked at Roz and Chris. Roz and Chris blinked at the psis.

Then Chris reached out through puterspace and switched the lights back off.

‘Let’s go!’ he shouted, vaulting the sofa. He threw his elbows up in front of his face and ran through the shouting psis, sending them flying.

Chris felt the psis’ minds snatching at them as they ran for it.

Oh no, you don’t,
said FLORANCE, somewhere in the back of his mind. Her communication was like champagne bubbles, making him want to giggle even as he belted down the marble corridor.

He felt FLORANCE slap at the psis, felt their cold touch recoil away from him like a snapped rubber band. Roz passed him, leading the way as they ran.

Chris reached back and slammed down a blast door, almost squashing one of the psis. He watched through a securicam as the man skidded to a halt, colliding with the door.

‘Woo hoo!’ shouted Chris, as they ran into the foyer, hearing his voice echo back from everywhere. He could feel the whole building!

‘Don’t get too carried away,’ panted Roz, running in behind him. ‘You’re better with this computer stuff – which way do we go?’

Private shuttle bay,
said FLORANCE.

‘Private shuttle bay,’ said Chris. ‘She’ll help us get through.’

‘I’ve always wondered,’ said Chris, as the shuttle headed for the great black yonder, ‘why it was a
bat
out of hell.’

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Roz just hung on to the table, her jaw set. At this speed the shuttle’s inertial dampeners were straining to compensate for the acceleration.

‘I mean, I guess the idea is that the bat is in a hurry because it’s cooking.’

The shuttle hit the top of its steep parabola. Roz’s stomach protested in no uncertain terms for a moment. Then she felt the gentle drop as they started their descent towards Ithaca City.

Chris opened his eyes. He was sitting opposite her with his arms folded. ‘FLORANCE is flying it now,’ he said. ‘She says that maintaining the link is a bit much.’

‘Did she happen to mention whether there was any sign of pursuit? Any missiles, that sort of thing?’

‘We’re clear. They don’t even know we’ve gone. I mean, they don’t know that the shuttle is gone. So long as they don’t think to look out a window.’

‘What’s our ETA?’

‘About an hour.’

‘Right, I’m going to grab some shuteye.’ Roz put her feet on the glass table and lay back on the plush seating. ‘Give me a yell when we’ve landed. And try not to play with the controls.’

‘Yes, ma’am,’ said Chris wryly. He pointed at the aft curtain.

‘There’s an actual bed in the back, if you’d prefer.’

‘I wonder if there’s any champagne…’ said Roz. She pulled herself up and headed for the back section.

When she pulled the curtain open, there was a man standing behind it.

It was the man who’d been trailing her on Fury.

There was a split second when he could have shot her. Later she saw in her mind the tip of his electric thrower emerging from his sleeve, ready for the moment she pulled the curtain back. It was only the fact that she opened it from the right side and not the left side that saved her.

She spun and the tip of the toe caught his arm, slamming it upward. He fell backward, landing on his arse in the kitchenette.

The oven door opened, knocking him on the head. ‘Ow,’ he said.

‘How’s that?’ said Chris.

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‘Oh, stop showing off,’ said Roz, pulling the thrower from the man’s arm. ‘Who are you? Screw that. How the hell did you get in here?’

‘Sorry about that,’ said FLORANCE, in the voice of the food heater. ‘I meant to tell you that I let him in, but things got a little busy.’

‘What?’ said Roz. ‘Who are you working for?’ she demanded.

‘Er,’ said the man. ‘I’m working for your sister.’

Roz couldn’t see Chris’s expression, but she knew it would involve big round eyes and probably an open mouth as well.

‘You’re what?’

‘Here,’ he said. He reached for his suit pocket. Roz brought the thrower to bear, but he was pulling a piece of paper from his pocket. ‘Relax,’ he said, holding it out.

Roz took it and read it. ‘Shit,’ she said.

‘Lady Leabie just wanted to make sure you were all right,’ the man said.

‘Keep your damned hands up,’ said Roz. She stuffed the paper into her pocket.

‘And she wants to know when you’re going to visit. Or call.

She says you could at least call once in a while.’

‘Well, I’ve been
busy
. I haven’t really had a chance. Look, who are you?’

The man took out his ID. James Llewellyn, House of Forrester, Internal Security. Roz shook her head and sat down.

‘So, he really is working for your sister?’ said Chris.

‘Yeah.’ She looked at the man. ‘You want a drink?’

199

Meanwhile

Black Sea Aquaculture Centre, 4 July 2982

Simon went in search of coffee during the refreshment break. He walked past tables heaped with seafood and algae, picked up a few futomaki, and finally discovered a steaming urn.

A woman in a Unitatus dress uniform stepped up. ‘Can you see any sugar?’ she said.

‘I’m afraid not,’ said Simon. ‘I wonder if they figured it would be better for our health.’

The woman smiled. She had a nice smile, and shiny red hair.

‘They probably just forgot. Earth Reptiles aren’t big on sweet flavours. I’m Joanna Morceli.’

Simon juggled his cup and spoon awkwardly and shook her hand. ‘Simon Frederson.’ His queue had fallen over his shoulder.

He straightened it.

She nodded. ‘Your people have done an extraordinary job, organizing this meeting.’

‘It took a lot of talking,’ admitted Simon. ‘And talking, and talking, and talking.’

‘Once you get an Earth Reptile chatting,’ she said, ‘it’s hard to get them to stop. But it’s even harder to get them to start talking in the first place.’ She gestured with her cup at a circle of Reptiles, land dwellers and water dwellers. ‘I never thought I’d see the Children of the Sea and the Seventeenth Third of the 200

Benevolent Triad having a conversation. Or the Monkey Boys in the same room as anybody.’

‘Must have been the offer of free food,’ said Simon. ‘To tell you the truth, I didn’t think they were going to show up.’ He tried some of the coffee. ‘I didn’t realize the Unitatus were sending a representative.’

‘I’m not really here for the negotiations,’ said Joanna. ‘We were worried there might be some triple-eyes about.’

Simon involuntarily glanced around the room. Indigenous Imperial Intelligence were firmly allied with the Empire’s security resources. ‘Don’t worry,’ said Joanna. ‘We haven’t identified any known agents.’

He relaxed. ‘I still get nervous,’ he apologized. ‘Haven’t been doing this very long.’

‘We all get nervous,’ said Joanna. ‘You must be a natural, then.

What brought you on side?’

Simon looked around. ‘Maybe we’d better mingle. I don’t want the guests to think the humans are ignoring them.’

Joanna smiled, and called ‘Miroka?’

Simon looked up as an Earth Reptile woman in a Unitatus uniform slowly walked up. ‘Hi,’ he said, astonished.

She inclined her head. ‘Miroka, this is Simon Frederson.’

‘I’ve heard of you,’ said the Earth Reptile, formally.

‘We were just talking about the reasons for what we’re doing,’

said Joanna.

Miroka inclined her head. Simon wasn’t sure what the gesture meant. ‘Equal rights,’ she said. ‘Self-determination. Excellent reasons for the Earth Reptiles to ally themselves with your cause.

But what about you?’

‘Oh, you know,’ said Simon. ‘The usual story. Boy meets girl, girl is killed during vicious suppression of riot, boy turns radical and discovers unforeseen talent for violence. Tanj, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that to sound as awful as it did.’

Miroka didn’t comment. ‘I’m sorry,’ said Joanna. ‘You must have other talents besides violence, though.’

‘I prefer this work to blowing things up,’ he said. ‘How about you?’

201

‘I got sick of organizing charity events,’ she said. ‘Not many people realize that the Unitatus were originally founded to protect Earth from outside threats. We kept going for centuries after we were seriously needed. When the Wars of Acquisition began, we weren’t just superfluous: we were a joke.’

Simon waggled his head. ‘I guess I see what you mean,’ he said. ‘
We
were the threat.’

‘Now the threat comes from inside the Empire, not outside,’

said Miroka. ‘We must act together to protect Earth.’